German retail supplier allegedly rationing RTX 5070 GPUs — more powerful Nvidia graphics cards are completely out of stock

An alleged European PC retailer went on Reddit and shared an email their supplier sent regarding GPU supplies. According to u/Gb2753’s post on the r/pcmasterrace subreddit, they can only order up to five units per Nvidia RTX 5070 graphics card, while the Nvidia RTX 5070 Ti and higher models are completely unavailable. There was no reason given for the limitation, except that it was “due to the current market situation.”

I’m a computer part seller in Europe. This is what my supplier sent me today from r/pcmasterrace

While the supplier did not explain why they’re limiting deliveries of the 5070 and stopping shipments of more powerful models, the entire world is currently gripped by a memory and storage shortage as the booming AI infrastructure build out is swallowing supply. Memory modules were the first to be impacted, with spot prices for 16GB DDR5 chips jumping by 450% in just the last quarter of 2025. It has gotten so bad that some scalpers are now selling DDR5 kits for more than $2,000 on eBay. NAND chips used in SSD storage are also following suit, with a Kingston rep saying that prices have gone up by 246% in the last year alone.

These price hikes will not stop at the RAM modules and SSDs, though. Instead, they will have a ripple effect on everything that needs memory and storage, with GPUs now being affected. Signs this would happen were first observed in late November, when Nvidia said that it will no longer supply VRAM alongside its GPU chips to board partners, meaning manufacturers need to source their own memory supply. This heavily affects higher performing GPUs that come with 16GB or more of GDDR7 memory.

While we cannot verify the accuracy of the report on Reddit, we did share confirmed reports of GPU rationing in Japan. The popular Tsukumo eX. computer retailer based in Akihabara posted signs limiting customers to just one 16GB+ GPU per purchase, whether it’s an Nvidia GeForce or AMD Radeon GPU. Other nearby stores had the same concerns, with some saying that their suppliers are unsure when they can deliver shipments again, if at all.

With the memory shortage hitting RAM kits, SSDs, and GPUs, some Japanese shops have halted PC orders just before Christmas 2025 and won’t deliver anything until 2026. This is an unprecedented step, especially as the holiday period is typically the time when many customers are spending their hard-earned cash to buy new gaming rigs for the new year. But with the AI infrastructure’s insatiable demand for memory and storage chips, it seems that consumers cannot do anything except wait out the storm until either memory and storage chip market falls back to normal levels or manufacturers build more fabs and production lines to catch up with the demand.

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